I don’t think I’ve ever even seen an e-ink reader. In the past year I thought I’d give more e-content a try, one reason being that my public library has loads of such content available - not just books but also magazines (like Harpers say) that I used to pay good money to subscribe to. I bought a used, not-too-old tablet with an 11" screen and thought I’d be good to go. But … it weighs a lot somehow and feels awkward in hand because of that, the screen while fine otherwise (it’s a pretty nice device IMO) is not-quite-sharp-enough it feels, and I find myself constantly zooming to help with that, but doing so messes up layouts and then I find myself scrolling not only up/down but also side-to-side, a real PITA. And apart from all that, being an Android device, there are also all kinds of apps right there begging for attention while I’m trying to read. Not a good experience even if some of it is a lack of self-control on my part.
I’ll have to research the devices. I would be concerned about the content ownership issue - I want to buy my books and have them under my complete control whether on-device or on-bookshelf (not counting any content that I don’t feel the need to own, like public library content). I don’t want to give Amazon a single cent either for hardware or for content because Amazon is an evil company. And of course I don’t want to pay a ton of $ on hardware either, or find that the content is much too pricey - I almost always buy books used but will usually pay hardcover prices when I do.
Thanks for your perspective. I now have another rabbit hole to dive down.
My first eink device was the Sony PRS-500 way back in 2007. It was slow and heavy for the time, but I was instantly sold on eink. I bought a Kindle in 2012 when it was a much more open ecosystem that absorbed the Mobi ebook commercial format. A year or two ago I bought a Kindle 12th gen, but Amazon lockdown, forced ads, and DRM was finally too much and I’ve given up on Amazon for ebooks. I was able to jailbreak that 12th gen Kindle and run KORreader on it so its no longer dependent on Amazon to read DRM free books. I can always boot back into the regular Kindle app if I want to read checked out library ebooks which run on Kindle DRM. I’m pretty happy with my current solution.
There are good guides for how to select an eink ereader that will likely have more info on today’s choices for you. Eink readers measuring battery life in “weeks per charge” is something you’ll love if you’ve been reading on an LCD tablet.
I don’t think I’ve ever even seen an e-ink reader. In the past year I thought I’d give more e-content a try, one reason being that my public library has loads of such content available - not just books but also magazines (like Harpers say) that I used to pay good money to subscribe to. I bought a used, not-too-old tablet with an 11" screen and thought I’d be good to go. But … it weighs a lot somehow and feels awkward in hand because of that, the screen while fine otherwise (it’s a pretty nice device IMO) is not-quite-sharp-enough it feels, and I find myself constantly zooming to help with that, but doing so messes up layouts and then I find myself scrolling not only up/down but also side-to-side, a real PITA. And apart from all that, being an Android device, there are also all kinds of apps right there begging for attention while I’m trying to read. Not a good experience even if some of it is a lack of self-control on my part.
I’ll have to research the devices. I would be concerned about the content ownership issue - I want to buy my books and have them under my complete control whether on-device or on-bookshelf (not counting any content that I don’t feel the need to own, like public library content). I don’t want to give Amazon a single cent either for hardware or for content because Amazon is an evil company. And of course I don’t want to pay a ton of $ on hardware either, or find that the content is much too pricey - I almost always buy books used but will usually pay hardcover prices when I do.
Thanks for your perspective. I now have another rabbit hole to dive down.
My first eink device was the Sony PRS-500 way back in 2007. It was slow and heavy for the time, but I was instantly sold on eink. I bought a Kindle in 2012 when it was a much more open ecosystem that absorbed the Mobi ebook commercial format. A year or two ago I bought a Kindle 12th gen, but Amazon lockdown, forced ads, and DRM was finally too much and I’ve given up on Amazon for ebooks. I was able to jailbreak that 12th gen Kindle and run KORreader on it so its no longer dependent on Amazon to read DRM free books. I can always boot back into the regular Kindle app if I want to read checked out library ebooks which run on Kindle DRM. I’m pretty happy with my current solution.
There are good guides for how to select an eink ereader that will likely have more info on today’s choices for you. Eink readers measuring battery life in “weeks per charge” is something you’ll love if you’ve been reading on an LCD tablet.